ASTANA – Kazakhstan’s citizens will be able to vote in the upcoming parliamentary and local elections on March 19 at 77 polling stations set up at the country’s diplomatic missions in 62 countries, according to the Kazakh Foreign Ministry’s statement released on March 10.
Kazakh Embassy in London. Photo credit: Facebook page of Kazakhstan’s Embassy in UK.
“To vote, citizens of Kazakhstan with active voting rights residing or staying for private, official, educational, business or tourism purposes in the respective foreign country and holding a valid passport of a citizen of Kazakhstan may apply to the diplomatic or consular mission of Kazakhstan, at which a polling station has been established,” reads the statement.
Voting at diplomatic or consular missions on March 19 will take place from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. local time.
The ministry recommends citizens of Kazakhstan contact the nearest polling station in advance and provide information for inclusion in the voter lists to ensure timely and full preparation of the voting process abroad. The list of polling stations and their contacts can be found here.
The election will decide who will represent Kazakhstan’s citizens in the Mazhilis, the lower house of Parliament, and in the maslikhats, local representative bodies. Election campaigning is currently in full swing and will last through midnight of March 18.
Following last year’s constitutional amendments, the Mazhilis will consist of 98 members, with 29 elected from single-mandate districts and 69 from party lists. There are 281 candidates from party lists and 435 candidates from single-mandate districts. A total of 359 out of 435 candidates in single-mandate districts are self-nominated.
The accreditation of foreign observers is open until March 13.
The country’s Central Election Commission has accredited 165 international observers so far.
